Real time order and activation processing system

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems are provided for utilizing interactive UI dialogs to resolve issues that may arise during the real-time ordering and activation of wireless products and services while a user is engaged during their session. The interactive UI dialogs may provide a customer with an opportunity to provide information, make decisions or trigger additional steps during the real time order.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/656,106, filed Oct. 17, 2019, which is a continuation application ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/661,896, filed Jul. 27, 2017, whichis a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/836,598, filed Mar. 15, 2013, and the disclosures of which areincorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the fields of Software as aService (SaaS) applications and electronic commerce for the purchase andactivation of wireless devices, wireless services and/or accessories.More specifically, the invention relates to systems and methods forproviding an interactive issue resolution dialog prompt to addressissues that arise during customer interactions with a real-time orderprocessing system while the customer is engaged.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Wireless service providers are constantly racing to provide customerswith the latest wireless devices, wireless service plans and/oraccessories associated with wireless devices or wireless service plans(“Wireless Product”). Popular mechanisms for offering these WirelessProducts to customers are via the use of purchase and activation portals(“portal”) that may be accessible online or via terminals located inretail stores. Before customers decide to purchase, upgrade or renew(collectively “Purchase”) Wireless Products, they are often interestedto find out whether they are eligible for an upgrade to their existingWireless Products or whether they meet a wireless carrier's eligibilityfor new Wireless Products. For example, conventionally, if a customersuch as a post-paid customer (customers that receive monthly bills forthe phone service, unlike pre-paid customers, who must pay for theirservice first before their phones will work) wants to determine theireligibility for new Wireless Products, they may have to select aparticular wireless carrier; contact the select wireless carrier;provide the wireless carrier's customer service representative (“CSR”)with the customer's appropriate information, including the customer'sname, address, Social Security number and driver's license (or state ID)number; receive a response from the CSR, after the CSR runs thecustomer's credit to determine whether the customer will require adeposit to open a new line of service or whether the customer isapproved for the Wireless Product. At this point, the customer may thenselect a desired Wireless Product for purchase from the CSR.Conventional systems for the purchase of Wireless Products may provide asingle wireless carrier pre-approval while customers are logged on totheir websites prior to orders for Wireless Products being submitted.These conventional systems may also prevent orders from being submittedif wireless carrier systems are unavailable. These conventional systemsmay also process orders for Wireless Products after a customer hasdisengaged or logged off from the online portal or if their session hasended. Any issues that arise from these orders that may require theintervention of a CSR may necessitate the CSR to contact the customervia a telephone call, email or letter to resolve the issues. This oftenleads to delays in shipment of the Wireless Products, increased customerservice inquires and costs and a reduction in the number of WirelessProducts that may be activated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a Real-Time Approval and Order Processing(“RTOP”) system. RTOP provides a UI with interactive issue resolutiondialogs that allow a customer to provide information, make decisionsand/or trigger additional steps in RTOP workflow while the customer isengaged. RTOP may also provide the ability to process approvalimmediately after orders are submitted by a customer. RTOP can alsoaccept orders for processing in the future that are submitted when thethird party systems are unavailable. Any orders received by RTOP whilethe third-party systems are unavailable may be automatically processedonce these third-party systems are available. After processing theseorders, RTOP may send appropriate notifications to customers who placedthese orders.

Embodiments of the present invention may include a system for providingan interactive real time wireless carrier approval and ordering programfor wireless products. The system includes a memory coupled to aprocessor; the processor operable to execute a program; the programstored in the memory and executable by the processor, the program beingoperable to providing a database of available wireless products from aplurality of wireless service providers for selection by a customer;receiving an order with an indication of a selected wireless productfrom the available wireless products via a web browser; storing theorder in a database; validating the stored order with one or morevalidation routines; transmitting the validated order to one or moresystems for processing; generating an interactive dialog if thevalidated order encounters a condition that requires input from thecustomer during the processing; displaying the interactive dialog on adynamic UI in the web browser; receiving the customer input via theinteractive dialog; and transmitting the customers input to the serverfor additional processing wherein, the customer is engaged.

Embodiments of the present invention may include a computer-implementedmethod for providing an interactive real time wireless carrier approvaland ordering program for wireless products. The method capable ofperforming at least the following steps of: providing a database ofavailable wireless products from a plurality of wireless serviceproviders for selection by a customer; receiving an order with anindication of a selected wireless product from the available wirelessproducts via a web browser; storing the order in a database; validatingthe stored order with one or more validation routines; transmitting thevalidated order to one or more systems for processing; generating aninteractive dialog if the validated order encounters a condition thatrequires input from the customer during the processing; displaying theinteractive dialog on a dynamic UI in the web browser; receiving thecustomer input via the interactive dialog; and transmitting thecustomers input to the server for additional processing wherein, thecustomer is engaged.

Additional features, advantages, and embodiments of the invention areset forth or apparent from consideration of the following detaileddescription, drawings and claims. Moreover, it is to be understood thatboth the foregoing summary of the invention and the following detaileddescription are exemplary and intended to provide further explanationwithout limiting the scope of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate preferred embodiments of theinvention and together with the detailed description serve to explainthe principles of the invention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an illustration of the exemplary system architecture of theplatform according to one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is an illustration of a high level flow chart of an exemplaryprocess for ordering and activating a new wireless device according toone embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is an illustration of a UI displaying the validation results froman order processed by a RTOP that was submitted with a pre-approval codeaccording to one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is an illustration of a UI displaying a completed validated orderprocessed by RTOP according to one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is an illustration of a UI displaying an activated and validatedorder processed by RTOP according to one embodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 6-12 are sample dynamic Active JavaScript and XML (AJAX) drivenRTOP UI in which a customer order is submitted with incorrectinformation according to one embodiment of the invention.

In the following detailed description of the illustrative embodiments,reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof.These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable thoseskilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is understood thatother embodiments may be utilized and that logical or structural changesmay be made to the invention without departing from the spirit or scopeof this disclosure. To avoid detail not necessary to enable thoseskilled in the art to practice the embodiments described herein, thedescription may omit certain information known to those skilled in theart. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be takenin a limiting sense.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As used herein, AJAX is a development technology for developing Webapplications that adapts a client side script and an Application and/orweb server 107 to asynchronously exchange data using the HTTP protocol.AJAX provides for the creation of interactive web applications thatmakes web pages feel more responsive by exchanging small amounts of databetween a web page and an application and/or web server 107 and makingpage user interface updates incrementally, without having to reload theentire page. By using AJAX, a richer and more dynamic Web applicationuser interface can be created. Its low response times and highavailability can approach the properties of a local desktop application.AJAX is a part of the JavaScript 1.3 standard and is supported by mostmainstream browsers.

As used herein, a “User Interface (UI)” may be a singular application,or alternatively a collection of inter-related apps, running on one ormore servers (not shown) that is accessed over a network such as theInternet 105 or an intranet (not shown), with a web browser, whichdisplays content to a user, accepts user input, and provides output bygenerating web pages which are transmitted via a network such as theInternet 105 or an intranet (not shown). Newer implementations utilizeHyper Text Markup Language version 5 (HTML 5), Java, AJAX, Adobe Flex,Microsoft .NET, or similar technologies to provide real time control ina separate program, eliminating the need to refresh a traditional HTMLbased web browser. A UI may also mean a computer software that is hostedin a browser-controlled environment (e.g. a Java applet) or coded in abrowser-supported language (such as JavaScript, combined with abrowser-rendered markup language like HTML) and reliant on a common webbrowser to render the application executable.

As used herein, a “database” may be a relational database, flat filedatabase, relational database management system, object databasemanagement system, operational database, data warehouse, hyper mediadatabase, post-relational database, hybrid database models, RDFdatabase, key value database, XML database, XML store, text file, flatfile or other type of database.

As used herein, “authentication” refers to any authentication and accesscontrol mechanisms employed for granting access to computer systems,including but not limited to usernames, passwords, user identificationnumber, biometric data, facial characteristics, voice, tokens or otherobjects from a single-sign-on (SSO) or identity server, two-factorauthentication, multi-factor authentication or other conventionalauthentication mechanism.

As used herein, a “workflow” broadly refers to a path and/or order ofsteps in which RTOP may perform a task. The order or number of steps mayvary in different embodiments.

As used herein, the term “real time” may include, but is not limited to,immediate, rapid, not requiring operator intervention, automatic, and/orprogrammed. Real time may include, but is not limited to, measurementsin femtoseconds, picoseconds, nanoseconds, milliseconds, as well aslonger, and optionally shorter, time intervals.

As used herein, a “rules engine” may include an expert system which isoperable to produce an output as a function of a plurality of rules. Arules engine, in one embodiment, may include an expert computer systemwhich utilizes and builds a knowledge base developed in the form ofbusiness rules and/or formulas to assist the user in decision-making.

As used herein, a “customer” or “user” refers, generally, to a user orCSR operating a client device with a UI that is engaged in, is engagedin, or will engage in a communication session (referred herein,generally, as a “visit”), typically via standard web browser software,with one or more servers in the platform.

As used herein, the term “Internet” shall incorporate the terms“Intranet”, “computer network” and “Extranet” and any references toaccessing the Internet 105 shall be understood to mean accessing anIntranet and/or Extranet and/or publicly accessible computer networksand private computer networks, as well. Examples of the Internet 105 mayalso include an internal network such as an Ethernet or a VirtualPrivate Network (VPN), one or more wireless networks, a wired network,an extranet, an intranet, a PSTN, a private network, or any othercommunication network.

In some embodiments, the platform 100 may be implemented using a rulesengine to automate business rules for ordering and activation of aWireless Product. In some embodiments, the business rules for orderingand activation of a Wireless Product may be implemented as a real-timeworkflow using a rules engine. In some embodiments, the platform 100 mayutilize an interactive dynamic AJAX-driven UI to provide a customer withthe current status of an order in the workflow. In some embodiments, theplatform 100 may ensure that all required steps in an online submittedcustomer order occur in rapid succession while a customer is engaged. Insome embodiments, the platform 100 may provide interactive UI to allowcustomers to provide information, make decisions, and/or triggeradditional steps in the workflow. In some embodiments, the platform 100may provide customers with an opportunity to automatically correct oradjusting existing wireless plans, if they already have accounts withwireless carriers for a selected wireless product. In some embodiments,Wireless Products may be sold with or without a wireless carrierservice. In some embodiments, the platform 100 may interface withmultiple wireless carrier systems for risk assessment, serviceprovisioning, wireless device activation, and other transactions. Insome embodiments, one or more of these transactions may be performedmanually by CSRs or agents of a provider of wireless carrier. Further,embodiments of the invention do not require store personnel to betrained to use ordering and activation systems associated with multiplecarriers

In some embodiments, the platform 100 may be implemented via one or moreclient devices, including but not limited to personal computers 101,notebooks 101, netbooks 101, tablets 102, cell phones 104, iPADs 102,PDAs 103 or other electronic device capable of supporting a browser.Each client device may be well known to those skilled in the art and mayinclude a display, a central processor, a system memory, and a systembus that couples various system components including the system memoryto the central processor unit. The system bus may be any of severaltypes of bus structures including a memory bus or memory controller, aperipheral bus, and a local bus using any of a variety of busarchitectures. The structure of system memory may be well known to thoseskilled in the art and may include a basic input/output system (BIOS)stored in a read only memory (ROM) and one or more program modules suchas operating systems, application programs and program data stored inrandom access memory (RAM). The computers may also include a variety ofinterface units and drives for reading and writing data and a databasefor storing data. The computing devices may run an Operating System(OS). The OS may include a shell, for providing transparent user accessto resources such as application programs. The OS may include a kernel,which provides essential services required by other parts of OS andapplication programs. The services provided by the kernel include memorymanagement, process and task management, disk management, and I/O devicemanagement. The OS may be the Linux Operating system, MicrosoftOperating system or other operating systems.

Each computing device may be able to communicate with another computervia a network using a network interface, which is coupled to the systembus. The network may be an external network such as the Internet 105.The client devices that implement the platform 100 may be implemented ona variety of hardware platforms or implemented in a variety of softwareenvironments.

Applications running on or accessing these computing devices may includea browser, a rules engine, a workflow application or other applicationrequired by the platform 100. A browser may include program modules andinstructions for enabling a World Wide Web (WWW) client to send andreceive network messages to the Internet 105. The browser may use wellknown protocols, such as Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) messagingto enable communication with other computing devices.

In some embodiments, the platform 100 may be implemented using anet-centric Application Service Provider (ASP) model, which includes butmay not be limited to a model wherein an application may be hosted on anapplication and/or web server 107, which can be accessed by the Internet105 or a network. In one alternative, the present invention may beembodied in a computer program, typically an application program runningon one or more application and/or web servers 107. Although theillustrative embodiment will be generally described in the context of anapplication running on an application and/or web server 107, otherwiseknown as an ASP model, those skilled in the art will recognize that thepresent invention may be implemented in any distributed computingenvironment including local area networks, wide area networks, as wellas the Internet 105. The network may include permanent connections, suchas wire or fiber optic cables, or temporary connections made throughtelephone or wireless communications. The distributed computingenvironments may include the Internet 105 with networks representing aworldwide collection of networks and gateways that use various protocolsto communicate with one another, such as Lightweight Directory AccessProtocol (LDAP), Transport Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP),Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTP), Wireless Application Protocol(WAP), and others.

In some alternatives, the platform 100 may operate in a model using abrowser to access one or more computers via AJAX or using communicationprotocols, such as the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) protocol. Insome embodiments, MCWP may provide comprehensive reporting capabilities,which may provide an insight in profitability and category mix. In someembodiments, MCWP may provide a customer with a multi-channelcapabilities to purchase Wireless Products pre-approved online or at aretail store or club and delivered to the customers home, picked-up at aretail store or club or shipped to a retail club or store if it is notavailable at the retail store. In some alternatives, the MCWP mayoptimize Wireless Products rate plans and features.

In another embodiment, a rules engine framework may be used to implementone or more workflows for the ordering and activation processing ofWireless Products. Now referring now to FIG. 4, there is shown a highlevel flow chart of an exemplary RTOP workflow for ordering andactivating a Wireless Product according to one embodiment of thisinvention. A customer that may or may not have selected a customizedWireless Products bundle with or without a pre-approval may access aPortal to purchase Wireless Products using a browser accessible from aclient device. In some alternatives, the customer may receive a specialoffer for a Wireless Product from a wireless carrier or other WirelessProduct vendor. In some alternatives, the customer may be prompted withan authentication dialog. The customer may select one or more WirelessProducts for purchase. The customer may opt to purchase other optionsassociated with a selected Wireless Product. The customer may enterinformation, such as a first name, an optional middle initial, a lastname, an address, an email address, customer's date of birth, a daytimephone number, a home phone number, Social Security number and driver'slicense (or state ID) number into RTOP fields. RTOP may then provide thecustomer with an option to review or select additional WirelessProducts. After the user has selected the desired wireless product, RTOPmay then provide the user with a UI for payment and for check out andsubmission of the order. In some alternatives of the invention, thepayment methods may include cash, check, credit card, debit card, and/orany other financial instruments. In some alternatives of the inventions,the customer may pay for selected items using payment services such asPayPal or Google. The RTOP process may begin after a Wireless Productorder received from a customer may have been validated using well knownorder validation routines for electronic commerce. In some alternatives,validation may include verifying the address of the customer or theaddress of the order using well known address validation routines. Insome alternatives, the address validation routines may be internalproprietary address validation routines. In some alternatives, addressvalidation routines may include the interaction with one or moreexternal third-party validation systems. In some embodiments, RTOP maydisplay interactive UI and messages on a dynamic UI available to theuser, while the user is engaged. In some alternatives, the dynamic UImay use technologies, such as AJAX or other interactive web technologyto refresh or update the dynamic UI data or submit data to the portal.In some alternatives, RTOP may use notifications displayed on the UI toinform the customer to remain engaged during the order processing,inform the customer that a third party system may require additionalinformation from them and to remain engaged, or inform them that theorder processing is complete and they may disengage from the onlinestore front. For example, in FIGS. 4, 5, 6 and 7, there are illustratedexemplary dynamic UI screens, according to one embodiment of theinvention that indicate to a customer that RTOP has received an order,the status of the order and informing the customer to remain engagedthrough the completion of order processing. In some alternatives, acustomer order may be transmitted to RTOP from a virtual inventoryprogram.

At step 201, RTOP may perform a trial credit card authorization based onthe payment information or credit card information provided in theWireless Product order. In some alternatives of the invention, the trialauthorization may be for at least $0 or $1. In some alternatives, thetrial authorization may be determined by wireless carrier guidelines. Insome alternatives, the trial authorization may be for the entire amountof the sale. In some alternatives, the trial authorization criteria maybe determined by guidelines provided by the credit card type, and/or thecombination of the carrier and activation type selected. In somealternatives, if the authorization is successful, RTOP may assign aunique identifier, such as an order number to the transaction. In somealternatives, RTOP may display the unique identifier on a dynamicAJAX-driven UI. In some alternatives, the unique identifier may also bedisplayed on a conventional UI. In some alternatives, the uniqueidentifier may be printed, emailed or transmitted via SMS to thecustomer, a third party or a CSR. If the trial authorization isunsuccessful, RTOP may provide the customer with an interactive UI toallow the customer to provide additional information, make decisions,and/or trigger additional steps within RTOP. For example, the customermay be provided with an opportunity to correct and/or update orderinformation, enter an alternative form of payment or correct the paymentinformation initially entered.

In step 202, RTOP may replicate the order details in Real-Time to one ormore back office systems 108. In some alternatives, the back officesystems 108 may be merchandising systems, provisioning systems,fulfillment systems, customer care systems, fraud detection systems,security systems, billing systems, wireless carrier systems, serviceprovisioning systems, wireless device activation systems, paymentprocessing systems, address verification systems, Encryption Systems orother transactions systems. In some alternatives, RTOP may interfacewith these systems via a web service or other type of service known inthe art.

In step 203, RTOP may route the order to at least one back office system108 or third party system 109, such as a Risk Management system toperform a fraud and revenue check on the customer or order prior torouting the order to the wireless carrier activation system. In someembodiments, RTOP may include sophisticated order fraud managementcapabilities including access to third party identity and credit dataproviders to obtain further information related to fraud preventionabout the customer and/or the customer's order. In some embodiments,RTOP may develop a fraud risk score for each order processed based on anumber of factors, including matches to a negative file, previouslyfraudulent orders, velocity filters, order cost, identity verificationdata, and credit card authorization data. The fraud risk score may beused to determine the need for additional automated or manual ordervalidation, or alternatively, to rejection of the order. In somealternatives, all fraud score parameters are customizable and havereal-time metrics reporting availability that display the frequency thata particular fraud trigger is activated, and the frequency with which anorder is canceled or shipment is blocked due to a fraud trigger. In somealternatives, if the order fails a fraud check, RTOP may accept theorder and send the customer a cancellation notice in a few days afterthe order has been placed. In some alternatives, the cancellation ordermay be sent via US mail, email or other notification mechanismdesignated by the customer. In some alternatives, if the order fails arevenue check, RTOP may generate a notice, such as a Fair CreditReporting Act (FCRA) notice and send the notice to the customer. In somealternatives, the notice may be sent via US mail, email or othernotification mechanism designated by the customer. In some alternatives,RTOP may provide the customer with an interactive UI dialog, ifadditional information is required for the fraud and revenue check. Insome alternatives of the invention, the fraud and revenue checks may bemodified or bypassed where a customer may have already received apre-approval notice from MWCP. In some alternatives, if the order passesthe automated fraud and revenue checks, RTOP may route the order to aback office system 108 or a third party system 109 for furtherprocessing.

Optionally, in step 204, RTOP may use information provided by thecustomer while submitting the order to lookup the customer's wirelesscarrier account. In some alternatives, this information may include, butis not limited to the customer account username, password, telephonenumber, credit card number or other authentication information.

In step 205, RTOP may perform a wireless carrier risk assessment as partof the further processing of the order from step 203. The wirelesscarrier risk assessment may include a credit check on the order usingthe information submitted by the customer, according to the rulesestablished for the selected Wireless Product carrier. RTOP mayinterface with multiple third party systems 109, such as wirelesscarrier risk assessment systems associated with one or more wirelessservice providers, as well as, interface with wireless device activationservices associated with one or more wireless service providers. In somealternatives, this interface may be via a business-to-business (B2B)interface that may be adapted to operate with any wireless serviceprovider using various wireless device technologies including, forexample, CDMA, GSM, and iDEN. If the order fails the wireless carrierassessment, RTOP may provide the customer with an interactive UI toallow the customer to provide additional information, make decisions,and/or trigger additional steps within RTOP. In some alternatives, RTOPmay notify the customer that the order is being routed to a third partysystem as illustrated in FIG. 7. In some alternatives, if the orderfails the credit check, RTOP may provide the customer with aninteractive dialog UI as illustrated in FIG. 8, to allow the customer toprovide additional information, make decisions, and/or triggeradditional steps within RTOP. For example, the customer may be providedwith an opportunity to correct and/or update order information, enter analternative form of payment or correct the payment information initiallyentered. In some alternatives, the wireless carrier may return andindicator, which includes but is not limited to an overall decision forthe Wireless Product request, such as “Pending”, “Approved”, “Denied”,“Deposit required”, “Manual Review”, “Credit Unknown”, “Data Error.” Insome alternatives, the wireless carrier may return an indicator, whichmay include a credit class/status, credit application number or numberof lines approved with potential line level deposit requirements. Insome alternatives, a CSR may access a third-party wireless carriersystem and submit the data manually. After the third-party wirelesscarrier system provides a response, RTOP may import this data from thethird-party system using any conventional means.

In step 206, if the order passes the carrier risk assessment checks instep 205, RTOP may perform an eligibility check, such as an upgradeeligibility check, a number port eligibility check, a number porttransfer check, and an existing account lookup for one or more customerson the order. In some alternatives, if the order includes adding a newline to a new account, adding a new line to an existing account or arate plan conversion and the addition of a new line, RTOP may allow thecustomer to port their existing number. In other examples, if the orderincludes an upgrade for a primary, secondary or other line, RTOP mayallow the customer to port their existing number and/or keep theirexisting plan. In further examples, if the order includes a new lineand/or upgrade for an individuals, small business, government orcorporate user, RTOP may allow the customer to port their existingnumber and/or keep their existing plan. In some alternatives, if theorder fails the credit check, RTOP may provide the customer with aninteractive dialog UI as illustrated in FIG. 7 to allow the customer toprovide additional information, make decisions, and/or triggeradditional steps within RTOP. For example, the customer may be providedwith an opportunity to correct and/or update order information, enter analternative form of payment or correct the payment information initiallyentered. In some alternatives, if the order passes the eligibilitycheck, RTOP may query one or more back end system 108 to determine ifthe items in the order are available for fulfillment of the order asillustrated in step 209.

In step 207, RTOP may perform a full credit card authorization for thetotal amount of the order. If the authorization for the order isunsuccessful, RTOP may request that the customer provide an alternateform of payment via an interactive dialog UI. In some alternatives ofthe invention, additional forms of payment include, but are not limitedto a check, another credit card, a debit card, and/or any otherfinancial instrument. In some embodiments, the customer may pay for theselected wireless items using payment services such as PayPal or GoogleCheckout. In some alternatives, the RTOP system may auto-fail an orderafter several unsuccessful attempts to authorize the transaction with acredit card, debit card, other financial instrument or payment services.In some alternatives, the RTOP system may auto-fail an order if itencounters an unexpected condition or other generic condition where theworkflow has been programmed to auto fail the transaction. After thecustomer provides an alternative form of payment, RTOP will attemptanother authorization for the total amount of the order. If thisauthorization for the order is partially successful, RTOP may requestthat the customer provide an additional form of payment via aninteractive dialog UI. In some alternatives of the invention, additionalforms of payment include, but are not limited to a check, another creditcard, a debit card, and/or any other financial instrument. In someembodiments, the customer may pay for the selected wireless items usingpayment services such as PayPal or Google Checkout. If the additionalform of payment is a credit card or a debit card, RTOP may perform afull credit card authorization as described in step 207. If theadditional payment is other than a credit card or a debit card, RTOP mayauthorize the order using conventional means and release of the orderfor fulfillment.

In step 208, RTOP may perform a manual review of the order for fraud. Insome alternatives, after a successful credit card authorization in step207, the order may be subjected to a manual review for fraud. In somealternatives, if the order does not require a fraud or manual reviewcheck and/or the order passes the fraud or manual review check, RTOP mayroute the order to step 209. In some alternatives, if the order does notpass a fraud or manual review check, RTOP may provide the customer withan interactive UI as illustrated in FIG. 8 to allow the customer toprovide additional information, make decisions, and/or triggeradditional steps within RTOP.

In step 209, RTOP may query one or more back office systems 108, such asthe Inventory System, an inventory management system or an orderfulfillment system for reserving the inventory. In some alternatives, ifitems in the order are not available in inventory, RTOP may perform amanual review for fraud as illustrated in step 208 or RTOP may hold theorder until it receives an indication that the selected wireless productis available. When RTOP receives an indication from the back officesystem 108 that the selected wireless product is available, RTOP mayperform a full credit card authorization as illustrated in step 207.After the order is reserved in the back office systems 108, the backoffice systems 108 may set the expectation on shipping and delivery forthe order, and may provide the customer with a UI displaying ananticipated shipping and/or delivery date for the order. In somealternatives, if the order cannot be reserved in the back office systems108, RTOP may provide the customer with an interactive UI as illustratedin FIG. 8 that may allow the customer to provide additional information,make decisions, and/or trigger additional steps within RTOP.

After step 209 is complete, RTOP may provide the customer with an optionto disengage from RTOP. In some alternatives, the customer may beprovided with a message displayed on a UI, such as messages informingthe customer that the order is ready for shipment and thanking the userfor using RTOP and/or visiting a Wireless Product retail store. In somealternatives, the customer may be provided with an interactive UI thatmay guide the customer with disengaging from RTOP. For example, in FIG.34, there is illustrated an exemplary dynamic UI screens, according toone embodiment of the invention that indicate to a customer that theorder is complete and the wireless product is ready for shipment.

In some alternatives, the interactive UI may allow customers to provideinformation, make decisions, and/or trigger additional steps in RTOP. Insome alternatives, the interactive UI may provide functionality todisplay custom messages, allow customers to resubmit new and/orpreviously entered data, chat with a customer service representativeonline, call a customer service representative via a telephone,automatically cancel the order online and/or cancel the order via atelephone call with a customer service representative. Interactive UI inRTOP may arise from the carrier risk assessment, step 205, porteligibility checks, step 206, manual review and/or fraud review, step207, RTOP being unable to reserve the selected wireless product in theinventory management system, step 208.

In some alternatives, interactive UI from the carrier risk assessment,step 205, may include interactions such as ‘Contact Us’ interactions,‘Deposit’ interactions and/or ‘Verify/Resubmit’ interactions. Forexample, in FIG. 8, there are illustrated an exemplary dynamic UIscreens, according to one embodiment of the invention that indicate to acustomer that RTOP system may require additional information. Additionalexamples of ‘Contact Us’ interactions may include: a message to customerto check back in x Hours; asking a Customer to Contact the provider;asking a customer to contact the wireless carrier & give them an optionto indicate when this has been completed, for example, “I've contactedmy carrier, Continue” button; an existing account message with a promptto contact Us; and asking a customer to contact us or cancel the order.Examples of ‘Deposit’ interactions may include: “Accept Deposit T&Cs,Collect Deposit;” “Accept Spending Limit & Continue to STOCK-1;” “AcceptDeposit T&Cs, Accept Sprint ASL, & Collect Deposit;” “Option to CancelDeposit Lines, Pay Deposits, Cancel Entire Order;” “Option to GetApproved Lines Only, or Cancel Order;” and “Option to Get Approved LinesOnly, Cancel Deposit Lines, Pay Deposits, Cancel Entire Order.” Examplesof ‘Verify/Resubmit’ interactions may include: “Re-enter SSN andresubmit;” “Re-enter Address and resubmit;” “Collect Additional PriorAddress & Resubmit with that Address;” “Re-Enter Name and/or SSN;”“Re-Enter Date of birth and resubmit;” “Re-enter PIN and resubmit;”“Re-enter DL # & resubmit;” “Re-Enter Port Info & Resubmit or chat ifdon't have account #;” “Re-Enter Port Account & Resubmit;” “Re-EnterAccount info or call us;” “Re-Enter Mobile # & Resubmit.”

In some alternatives, interactive UI from the port eligibility checks,step 206, may include ‘Port Eligibility Resubmit’ interactions such as“Re-enter SSN and resubmit;” “Re-enter Address and resubmit;” “CollectAdditional Prior Address & Resubmit with that Address;” “Re-Enter Nameand/or SSN;” “Re-Enter Date of birth and resubmit;” “Re-enter PIN andresubmit;” “Re-enter DL # & resubmit;” “Re-Enter Port Info & Resubmit orchat if don't have account #;” “Re-Enter Port Account & Resubmit;”“Re-Enter Account info or call us;” “Re-Enter Mobile # & Resubmit.” Insome alternatives of the interactive UI may provide warnings about anexisting account or the outcomes of the port check eligibility, step207. Examples of existing account interactive UI may include a warningabout a discount program, such as an Instant Savings Discount (ISD)program; if the ISD is available, merge & prompt for acceptance, or chatwith agent to change order/cancel; an offer to upgrade at an increasedcost or cancel order; an offer or option to get new number, shop onlinefor another carrier (& cancel), or contact another rep; and/or run aprocess to validate a customer order and determine whether a WirelessProduct selected in the order meets certain criteria for the selectedrate plans & either update order or ask them to contact us (be able totest showing rev price). Examples of Eligibility Outcomes that may usecase workflows in RTOP may include: telling a customer that the orderwas approved (Delay processing 1-2 days); telling a customer that theywill be eligible on X date, and we will process then; telling a customerthat they're not eligible, ask if they want SMS notification when theywill be eligible for an upgrade; telling a customer that we areprocessing eligible lines right away & will process additional line wheneligible; telling a customer which lines they're eligible for, withcontinue or cancel; and telling a customer which lines they're approvedfor, with continue or cancel.

In some alternatives, manual review and/or fraud review, step 207, mayinclude interaction dialogs, such as ‘Reviewing Order,’ Check back in XMins/Hrs, ‘Chat/Click to Call.” Examples of Chat & Click to call mayinclude: Configurable individually on/off by use case/outcome & carrier;Configurable to queues by use case/outcome & carrier; Chat availablebased on staffing/agent availability; Click to call times availablebased staffing/agent availability; Examples of ‘Cancel’ interactiondialogs may include Configured as present or not by use case/outcome &carrier; When present configurable to be automatic cancel or launchchat; When chat, configurable to queues by use case/outcome & carrier;Also present in harder to find part of site? In some alternatives, RTOPbeing unable to reserve the selected wireless product in the inventorymanagement system, step 208, may include the following interaction UI.Reserve Specific Inventory, Tell Customer Expected Delivery Date; HoldSpot for Bulk Inventory, Tell Customer Expected Delivery Date; Thank youfor your order, Hold Spot for Future Inventory, Expected Ship Date(popular/slight delay); Ask customer to contact us (C&A Rep helps thempick another phone); Generic out of stock message, with click to chat.

Although the foregoing description is directed to the preferredembodiments of the invention, it is noted that other variations andmodifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and may bemade without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.Moreover, features described in connection with one embodiment of theinvention may be used in conjunction with other embodiments, even if notexplicitly stated above.

1-12. (canceled)
 13. A computer-implemented method in a distributingcomputing system for providing an interactive real time validation basedin interactions with third party wireless carrier systems, the methodcomprising: receiving an order with an indication of a selected wirelessproduct from a database of available wireless products; interfacing witha risk assessment third party system for validation of the order;receiving data from the risk assessment third party system in responseto providing the risk assessment third party system informationassociated with the order; determining if the order passed a riskassessment based on the data received from the risk assessment thirdparty system; triggering an interactive dialog to be displayed on a UserInterface (UI) requiring input in response to the order not passing therisk assessment; validating the order with one or more validationroutines based on the data received from the risk assessment third partysystem; transmitting the validated order to a wireless carrier thirdparty system for processing, in response to validation of the order withthe one or more validation routines; triggering the interactive dialogto be displayed on the UI in response to a condition detected by thewireless carrier third party system, the interactive dialog thatrequires input from a customer during the automated processing, theinteractive dialog displays a dynamically created customized message andis dynamically generated based on a type of the condition detected; andtransmitting customer input received via a user interface presenting theinteractive dialog continuously to the risk assessment third party orwireless carrier third party system for additional processing, wherein,the customer is engaged during the method.
 14. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 13, wherein the one or more validation routines are oneor more of: risk assessments, port eligibility checks, fraud, unable toreserve the selected wireless product, other errors and combinationsthereof.
 15. The computer-implemented method of claim 13, wherein theuser interface includes one or more of: custom interactions,resubmission interactions, chat interactions, click to callinteractions, auto cancel interactions, cancel via chat interactions,other interactions and combinations thereof.
 16. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 13, wherein continuously engaged isa single user session.
 17. The computer-implemented method of claim 13,wherein method is performed in real time.
 18. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 13, further comprising a subsequent interactive dialogproviding the interactive dialog to a dynamic user interface; receivingthe customer input via the interactive dialog; and transmitting thecustomer input continuously to one or more third party systems foradditional processing, for any subsequent encounter of a condition. 19.A system for providing an interactive real time validation from wirelesscarriers, the system comprising: a memory coupled to a processor; theprocessor operable to execute a program; the program stored in thememory and executable by the processor, the program being operable toperform the method of: receive an order with an indication of a selectedwireless product from a database of available wireless products;interface with a risk assessment third party system for validation ofthe order; receive data from the risk assessment third party system inresponse to providing the risk assessment third party system informationassociated with the order; determine if the order passed a riskassessment based on the data received from the risk assessment thirdparty system; trigger an interactive dialog to be displayed on a UserInterface (UI) requiring input in response to the order not passing therisk assessment; validate the order with one or more validationroutines, based on the data received from the risk assessment thirdparty system; transmit the validated order to a wireless carrier thirdparty system for processing, in response to validation of the order withthe one or more validation routines; trigger the interactive dialog ifthe validated order encounters a condition detected by the wirelesscarrier third party system, the interactive dialog that requires inputfrom a customer during the automated processing, the interactive dialogdisplays a dynamically created customized message and is dynamicallygenerated based on a type of the condition detected; and transmitcustomer input received via a user interface presenting the interactivedialog continuously to one or more third party systems for additionalprocessing, wherein, the customer is engaged during the method.
 20. Thesystem of claim 19, wherein the one or more validation routines are oneor more of: risk assessments, port eligibility checks, fraud, unable toreserve the selected wireless product, other errors and combinationsthereof.
 21. The system of claim 19, wherein the user interface includesone or more of: custom interactions, resubmission interactions, chatinteractions, click to call interactions, auto cancel interactions,cancel via chat interactions, other interactions and combinationsthereof.
 22. The system of claim 19, wherein continuously engaged is asingle user session.
 23. The system of claim 19, wherein method isperformed in real-time.
 24. The system of claim 19, further comprising asubsequent interactive dialog providing the interactive dialog to adynamic user interface; receiving the customer input via the interactivedialog; and transmitting the customer input continuously to the one ormore third party systems for additional processing, for any subsequentencounter of a condition.